Game #27: Tucson Roadrunners (1) vs Colorado Eagles (3)
Game #27: Tucson Roadrunners (1) vs Colorado Eagles (3)
SOG: TUC (33) – COL (31)
PP: TUC (0/4) – COL (0/7)
COLORADO SCORING: Calle Rosen (4, 5), Tye Felhaber (10)
TUCSON SCORING: Kailer Yamamoto (7)
3-1 Defeat to Colorado Snaps Roadrunners’ Six-Game Win Streak
TUCSON, AZ – The Tucson Roadrunners (16-11-0-0) rallied from a two-goal deficit in the third period but came up short in a 3-1 loss to the Colorado Eagles on Saturday at Tucson Arena. The defeat ended Tucson’s season-high six-game winning streak and dropped them to sixth place in the Pacific Division. The Eagles (15-8-1-2) extended their win streak to three games, and moved up to fourth place with 33 points, one ahead of the Roadrunners.
Colorado broke the scoreless deadlock late in the second period and added a goal early in the third to take a 2-0 lead. Tucson’s Kailer Yamamoto scored to cut the deficit in half eight minutes into the final frame. The Roadrunners put the pressure on Colorado and dominated time of posession for the remainder of the game, but Eagles goaltender Trent Miner stood tall and made 32 saves to secure the victory.
Roadrunners goalie Matt Villalta was also impressive between the pipes, making 28 saves to keep Tucson within striking distance.
YA GOTTA SEE IT
Villalta made several key saves on Saturday, with none bigger than his sliding glove save on Colorado’s Calle Rosen midway through the second period. He also robbed Rosen moments earlier on a one-timer opportunity, with both stops coming while Tucson was shorthanded. Villalta’s highlight-reel save helped the Roadrunners kill that penalty, and six others throughout the game. Tucson’s penalty kill was flawless on the night, successfully killing all seven of Colorado’s power plays.
DON’T OVERLOOK IT
Yamamoto pulled the Roadrunners within one goal eight minutes into the third period. Poganski set up the play, wrapping around the net and firing a quick pass to Yamamoto in front of the crease. The assist extended Poganski’s point streak to a season-high three games, while Yamamoto’s goal pushed his own streak to three games, giving him four points (one goal, three assists) during that span.
THEY SAID IT
“That’s half the battle. These games have a lot of emotion running through them, whether it’s positive or negative. We have to stay in the middle, and stay calm, cool, and collected, and take care of business when we can. “
Roadrunners captain Austin Poganski on keeping emotions in check during a physical game.
THE RUNDOWN
First Period
The Roadrunners came out with urgency from the opening shift. Just 30 seconds in, Austin Poganski set up Cameron Hebig for a one-timer in the slot from behind the net, but Miner made the save.
The game’s physicality intensified midway through the period, beginning with a hard check by Roadrunners defenseman Montana Onyebuchi on Eagles forward TJ Tynan in Tucson’s defensive zone. Moments later, Tucson’s Curtis Douglas and Colorado’s Tye Felhaber squared off at center ice, but officials intervened before the fight could escalate. Both players received matching unsportsmanlike conduct penalties.
During the ensuing four-on-four play, Tynan was called for holding, giving the Roadrunners a four-on-three power play for the first minute of their man advantage. As the matching penalties expired, forward Josh Doan nearly redirected Andrew Agozzino’s point shot into the net, but Miner made an excellent save to preserve the scoreless tie.
Miner’s strong play in net allowed the Eagles to kill off the Roadrunners’ power play, and Colorado earned their first man-advantage shortly after when Tucson was called for interference. While shorthanded, Doan intercepted a pass and broke free from the defensive zone. On the ensuing breakaway, he deked from right to left onto his backhand, but Miner made a sprawling save to deny the opportunity.
Midway through the penalty kill, a Tucson tripping minor gave Colorado a five-on-three power play, creating a prime chance to take the lead. Despite the pressure, Roadrunners goaltender Matthew Villalta made a few clutch saves, including a crucial stop on Tynan’s one-timer off a feed from Jacob MacDonald.
The opening 20 minutes concluded with a pair of extracurricular skirmishes, capping off a physical period. Tucson’s Ben McCartney and Egor Sokolov were each assessed roughing minors, while MacDonald was the lone Eagle to receive a penalty.
Second Period
The Eagles began the second period with a five-on-four power play, but Villalta came up big on the penalty kill. He slid across the crease to make a spectacular glove save on a point-blank one-timer attempt by Colorado forward Jean-Luc Foudy, keeping the game scoreless.
Six minutes into the period, an interference penalty gave Colorado their fourth power play of the night. During the penalty kill, Villalta made the save of the game, sliding from right to left to snag defenseman Calle Rosen’s blast from the point with his glove.
Tucson successfully killed off the penalty, but just 90 seconds later, a hooking call put them on the penalty kill for the fifth time. Villalta continued his strong play, turning aside another one-timer from Rosen with a right-pad save to keep the Eagles off the board.
After successfully killing the penalty, Tucson earned their third power play of the night when Colorado was called for interference. The Roadrunners’ best scoring chance during the man advantage came from Agozzino, who fired a close-range snapshot from below the right circle, but the Eagles’ penalty kill kept the game scoreless.
With five minutes left in the period, a Roadrunners hooking penalty gave Colorado their sixth power play of the evening. Tucson successfully killed the penalty, but shortly after, Rosen put the Eagles on the board. Rosen fired a low slap shot from the top of the circle past Villalta to give Colorado a 1-0 lead with 2:56 remaining in the period.
Third Period
The Eagles doubled their lead just 1:30 into the second period. Felhaber intercepted a Tucson pass and broke in alone, slipping the puck through Villalta’s five-hole on the breakaway to make it 2-0 Colorado.
The Roadrunners responded immediately, with McCartney generating a quality scoring chance on the next shift. His effort set up back-to-back shots from the point by Montana Onyebuchi and defenseman Robbie Russo.
Tucson finally broke through eight minutes into the period and cut Colorado’s lead in half. Kailer Yamamoto fired a one-timer from the slot off a perfect feed from Poganski, who delivered the pass from behind the net, to make it a 2-1 game.
Shortly after Yamamoto’s goal, Tucson was called for hooking, but the Roadrunners successfully killed their seventh penalty of the night. Once back at even strength, Tucson controlled the game. Agozzino capitalized on a Colorado turnover, finding himself alone in the offensive zone. He fired a quick shot on goal, but Trent Miner made his most crucial save of the game, preserving the Eagles’ narrow lead. Then, Poganski had a great opportunity on a two-on-one with Yamamoto, but the rolling puck made it difficult for Poganski to get a strong enough shot off.
With five minutes remaining, a Colorado tripping minor gave Tucson their fourth power play and a golden opportunity to tally the equalizer. However, the Roadrunners weren’t able to generate many scoring tries with the man advantage.
Tucson continued to sustain pressure in the Eagles’ zone and pulled goaltender Matt Villalta for the extra attacker with two minutes remaining. However, Rosen sealed the game for Colorado, scoring an empty-net goal, his second of the night to make it 3-1 in the final minute.
The Roadrunners will aim to split the series and end 2024 with a victory when they face the Eagles in game two on Sunday at Tucson Arena. Puck drop is set for 4 p.m. MST. The game will be available to stream on AHLTV on FLO HOCKEY and tickets can be purchased using the link here.
